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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. lean — thin
  3. bear — the animal
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. field — a subject
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. cue — a signal
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. cue — a hint
  10. bear — the animal
  11. cue — for pool
  12. lie — to recline
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. craft — a skill
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. field — farmland
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. rush — hurry
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. field — for sport
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. lean — to bend

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com